Players are of course free to invent all kinds of unique minifig items in addition to the generic weapon types. Who knows what mysterious powers this Skully Grail might possess?

Chapter Three: Minifig Weapons

With the logic-defying ability to weild an unlimited number of weapons simultaneously, the semi-mythical hero Zahru Trollarm brought the human minifigs of Medivo back from the brink of extinction in ancient times, slaying his way through hordes of Dungans, trolls, and the undead forces of the evil spirit Warhead.

The weapons with which you arm your minifigs are best chosen according
to which look the coolest. More practical considerations might increase
your armys chances of victory, but that's hardly a priority compared to
the importance of looking rad.

Minifig Weapons

Weapon

Cost

Use

Range

Damage

Notes

Close Combat Weapons

Hand Weapon (S)

2CP

2

CC

Skill die

Heavy Weapon (M)

3CP

3

CC

Skill die +2

may be paired with Shield or Heavy Shield
1" KnockBack to minifigs (no Disruption)
can be used Two-Handed for Armor Piercing

Two-Handed Weapon (L)

4CP

4

CC

2 Skill dice

Two-Handed;
can't be thrown
1" KnockBack to minifigs

Ranged Weapons

Short-Ranged Weapon (S)

3CP

3

6"

some are Two-Handed

Long-Ranged Weapon (M)

5CP

3

10"

+1

Two-Handed

Explosive (S)

1CP

1*

3"*

Exp

affects all targets within 2"
1" KnockBack * Range if thrown

Bodily Protection

Shield (S)

1CP

2

CC

Deflecting Parry

Parry or Shove only; can Parry Charge attacks and thrown weapons

Heavy Shield (M)

1CP

3

CC

Deflecting Parry

same as Shield; can provide cover

Body Armor

1CP

-

-

Armor +2

can't swim, jump, or fly

Heavy Armor

2CP

-

-

Deflection

Half Speed; can't swim, jump, or fly

Desperate Measures

Bare Hands

-

0*

CC

Shove 2" or Grab

* Automatic Hit for Shoves and Grabs

Minifig Tool (S)

1CP

3

CC

Skill die -1

Random Object

-

4

CC

Skill die -2

Thrown Object

*

*

3"

*

* use object's Close Combat stats

Extended Armories

The minifig armaments presented here are only the most basic assortment. A broader range of weapon sizes, damage types, and fiddly performance variations are available in Chapter Eight: Weaponry.

Less well-equipped minifigs will try to tell you that it's not the
size that matters, it's how you use it. This is
false. Minifig weapons, like anything of importance, are categorized by length. Weapons shorter than a minifig are Short(S), weapons equal in length to the height of a minifig are Minifig-Size(M), and weapons longer than a minifig are Long(L).

Players might be tempted to think of the letters as standing for Small, Medium, and Large, but that would be much less precise.

With only a few exceptions (shortbows, in particular), Short weapons are one-handed and minifigs can pair them with other Short weapons and equipment in any combination (a sword and shield, a crossbow and knife, a pair of revolvers, a briefcase and syringe), or with a Heavy Shield. Minifig-Sized items are more restricted; a Heavy Weapon can be paired with a Shield or Heavy Shield, but otherwise Minifig-Sized equipment can't be paired. Long weapons are all two-handed and can never be paired by a minifig on foot (although there are exceptions for minifigs on Horseback, described later (Chapter H: The Horse)).

3.1: Close Combat Weapons
Killing enemies from a safe distance is all well and good, but any
minifig worth his plastic will tell you that's for cowards. Nothing beats the meaty
hands-on thrill of manually whacking an uncooperative enemy into
a pile of bloody plastic chunks. Close Combat weapons are used to make
Close Combat attacks, as you might suspect (5.2:
Close Combat).

The power of a Close Combat strike depends on the strength of the arm swinging the weapon, and a Close Combat weapon's Damage rating is based on the Skill die of the minifig holding it. Normal minifigs have a default d6 Skill die (Chapter 2: The Mighty Minifig), so their Close Combat damage is rated in d6es. Specialized minifigs in later chapters can have larger or smaller Skill dice.

The majority of Hand Weapons are about one Brik shorter than a regular minifig; exactly the height of this dwarven warrior.

Hand Weapons are light and easy to handle, and they leave the
second hand free for another one-hand weapon or equipment item. Hand Weapons can be paired with any other Short weapon (a Hand Weapon, Short-Ranged Weapon, Explosive, Shield, or Minifig Tool) or a Heavy Shield.

Heavy Weapons are the height of a minifig. They are most often paired with a Shield, as this Hoplite demonstrates.

Weapons shown: Red
Bean Studios, LEGO, Little Armory, Mega Bloks

Heavy WeaponsSize:(M) Cost:3CP Use:3 Range:CC Damage:Skill die +2 Notes: May be paired with
Shield or Heavy Shield; 1" KnockBack to minifigs (no Disruption), can be used 2H for Armor Piercing

Heavier than regular Hand Weapons, but not requiring the dedicated
use of both hands like a Two-Handed Weapon, Heavy Weapons combine many of the advantages of each. Sometimes called Hand-And-A-Half
or Bastard Weapons, Heavy Weapons include such weapons as broadswords,
battleaxes, flails, spears, katanas, chainsaws, and beamsabers.

Heavy Weapons do not include Lightsabers, because the Lightsaber is a trademark of Lucasfilm Ltd., and god forbid we ever risk infringing a trademark.

Minifigs wielding a Heavy Weapon
cannot carry a second weapon of any type in their off hand, although
they may equip a Shield or Heavy Shield.

As a Hand-And-A-Half Weapon, a Heavy Weapon can be swung with one hand or two. Either has the same effect against unarmored targets, doing Damage equal to one Skill die plus 2.

Against a target with Deflection, swinging a Heavy Weapon with two hands instead of one can provide Armor Piercing power. When using two hands to swing a Heavy Weapon, Deflection removes the +2 from the Damage rather than the die, bringing the final Damage to one Skill die and making the Heavy Weapon as effective as a Two-Handed Weapon against armored foes. (Subsequent layers of Deflection reduce Damage as normal.)

A minifig can't swing a Heavy Weapon two-handed if he's already used his off hand for something else on that turn. If he's carrying something in the off hand but hasn't used it yet, he can drop the object and immediately make the two-handed swing.

Any minifig who takes Damage from a hit with a Heavy Weapon is pushed one inch directly away from the attacker, regardless of whether the Damage kills him, as if he were experiencing KnockBack from an Explosion (3.2: Ranged Weapons). Unlike other forms of KnockBack, a hit from a Heavy Weapon does not cause a minifig to be Disrupted (4.1: Movement) - they are pushed backwards but manage to stay on their feet.

Even with added height of the most ostentatious helmet plumes, this Centurionette is dwarfed by her massive Two-Handed Sword.

Weapons shown: custom
mold, Little Armory, LEGO

Two-Handed WeaponsSize:(L) Cost:4CP Use:4 Range:CC Damage:2 Skill dice Notes: Two-Handed; cannot be thrown Two-Handed Weapons give heavy troops the power to destroy the
sturdiest armored foe, and the ability to hit at targets normally out of reach - striking behind
a rank of other minifigs, surprising
targets on separate building levels, or nailing riders on horseback.

The drawback is that Two-Handed Weapons can be difficult to maneuver and wield effectively. Minifigs carrying a Two-Handed Weapon have a hard time navigating tight spaces,
and they need both hands free to use the weapon in Close Combat. (Players don't
have to pose the minifig with both hands physically holding the weapon
shaft; it's understood
that both hands come together to swing the weapon at the moment of
attack, so quickly that the eyesight of Humans is unable to detect
it.)

Worse, a Two-Handed Weapon's extra inches of reach carry their
own vulnerability - an enemy minifig can sneak up closer than the
weapon's minimum effective range. A minifig swinging a Two-Handed
Weapon must have one hand on the bottom-most grippable part of the handle.
This may mean that he doesn't have enough space to bring the weapon's
striking surface into contact with the target. If the minifig is unable
to back up far enough to give himself room to swing, then the enemies
inside that distance can only be Shoved, not attacked (5.2:
Close Combat).

There is one important exception to the Two-Handed Weapon's two-hands requirement: Jousting, decribed in H.3: Fighting From Horseback. A minifig riding a steed or vehicle only needs one hand to use a Two-Handed Weapon as a lance in a Charge attack, as long as it has a pointy tip. Jousting minifigs can use their free hand to wield a Short-sized weapon, Shield, or equipment item.

Any minifig who takes Damage from a hit with a Two-Handed Weapon is pushed one inch directly away from the attacker and Disrupted (4.1: Movement), regardless of whether the Damage kills him, as if he were experiencing KnockBack from an Explosion.

3.2: Ranged Weapons

“You can go a long way with a smile. You can go a lot farther with a smile and a gun.”

- Al Capone

It's hard to beat the joy of plunging a hand weapon into exposed
enemy flesh (but not impossible: see the Explosives section below).
But it can be frustrating when some jokester thinks it's
funny to keep bouncing around just out of reach of a minifig's hand axe.
It's times like this that he wants a nice ranged sidearm, to wipe
the enemy grin off the enemy face in the most literal fashion (5.3: Ranged Combat).

Smaller Ranged Weapons give a minifig the ability to strike at a distance while leaving his other hand free for life's more visceral pleasures - in the case of this Star Marine, a wickedly serrated gutting-knife.

Most light ranged weapons fall under the Short-Ranged Weapons heading: revolvers,
shortbows, blowguns, magic wands, and slings are good examples. Most
can be fired with one hand; a little common sense should be enough to
determine how many hands a given weapon requires (a light crossbow can be
fired with one hand, for instance, while a shortbow or slingshot takes two).

Like Hand Weapons, Short-Ranged Weapons can be paired with any Short-sized weapon or a Heavy Shield. Because
their limited range puts minifigs dangerously close to an enemy's ability
to counterattack, Short-Ranged Weapons are often paired with a Hand
Weapon in the opposite hand, or paired with a second Short-Ranged Weapon and used in hit-and-run harrying attacks
that keep the Ranged attackers just out of enemies' reach.

Long-Ranged Weapons are for warriors who wish to focus exclusively on ranged attacks. This steel-bikinied commando doesn't care much for hand weapons; she's never met a problem her bazooka couldn't solve.

Long-Ranged Weapons are higher-powered
than regular Ranged Weapons, allowing minifigs to pack a solid punch
while staying out of enemy units' immediate melee range. Muskets, longbows,
heavy crossbows, and a Magic Staff of Lightning Bolts are all Long-Range
Weapons. Long-Range Weapons are generally about the length of a minifig,
and always require two hands.

These Yellow bullies learn to regret picking on innocent Peaches when RoC shows up with a missile launcher.

ExplosivesSize:(S) Cost:1CP Use:1* Range:3"* Damage: Exp Notes:* -
if thrownHand-held Explosives come in a variety of forms for a variety
of purposes - grenades for throwing, rockets for firing, and timed
charges for dropping somewhere and getting the hell away. A minifig's
Explosive can do any of the above. If he throws it, it's a grenade;
if he fires it from a launcher (launchers are bought as Short-Ranged
or Long-Ranged Weapons), it's a rocket. If he drops it on the ground
and says "I'm setting the fuse to go off on the end of my next
turn," then it's a timed charge; if he attaches it to an enemy vending machine and says "I'm setting the fuse to go off when I hit the button on this transmitter (bought as a Minifig Tool (3.4: Desperate Measures))," then it's a remote detonator.

Three inches isn't a whole lot of Range, especially when it comes to throwing dynamite and grenades. Minifigs who rely on thrown weapons will want to familiarize themselves with the rules for making attacks Out of Range (5.1: Making Attacks).

Elements shown: LEGO, Brickarms

Once they go off, though, all Explosives work exactly the same way.
The Explosive does 1d10 Explosion damage to every exposed object and
surface within a two-inch radius. (Objects completely hidden behind cover are only damaged if the cover is destroyed.)

Objects within this radius are also subject to KnockBack. Loose objects within two inches of the Explosion,
such as minifigs not wearing seatbelts, are pushed one inch directly
away from the center of Explosion. Fixed objects, such as brick walls,
are only Knocked Back if the Explosion breaks them into loose objects. Minifigs who are Knocked Back are Disrupted (4.1: Movement).

Each Explosive can only be used once, for obvious reasons.

3.3: Bodily Protection

Lord Karetsu's armor awakens the demon curse haunting him since his crimes against Tikoskum.

“To a surprising extent the war-lords in shining armor, the apostles of the martial virtues, tend not to die fighting when the time comes. History is full of ignominious getaways by the great and famous.”

- George Orwell

A minifig's job is to do damage and kill enemies,
not to worry about coming home alive afterwards. A good leader knows that the best defense is a good offense, and a budget surplus should always be spent on more weapons and more
men, not on protective gear. The presence of such equipment calls into doubt the soldiers' eagerness to throw away their lives meaninglessly for the Humans' entertainment.

But the minifigs who request protective gear are likely to be among the
least popular units, so it's good to buy them some. The longer the cowards
stay alive, the more angry their allies will be, and
that's a good state of mind for battle.

Deflection
When damage strikes a minifig wearing Heavy Armor, or one who successfully parries with a shield or weapon, he has Deflection against the blow. Deflection removes one die from each source of Damage, before the Damage is rolled.

For weapons with multiple die types, Deflection removes one of each type of die, except for d12s (MOC Combat: Fancy Dice). If a target has Deflection against a source of Damage that has no dice to remove, then the Deflection cancels 1d6 worth of the Damage.

By wearing Heavy Armor and successfully Parrying an attack at the same time, the most spineless minifigs of all can have Deflection twice, removing two dice from a source of incoming Damage.

Secondary Effects on Shielded Targets

Some special types of attacks can have secondary effects, which are introduced in later chapters. Whether or not Deflection protects from them depends on whether the effects are based on the quantity of Damage dice being rolled, or on the results of the rolls. It can help to handle secondary effects in the following order:

Before rolling for Damage, handle any effects based on the quantity of Damage dice. KnockBack effects from large Weapons are the most common example (8.1: Weapon Size).

Next, remove Damage dice for Deflection.

Finally, roll the Damage dice that remain, and handle any secondary effects that are based on the numbers rolled. Examples include checks for Grinding Damage (7.2: Taking Damage) and objects catching on Fire (8.4: Automatic Weapons).

Because Princess Wendy can't be armored up for official functions, she depends on a ring of heavily-armored handmaidens to absorb attacks against her royal person.

Weapons shown: Little
Armory, LEGO, Red Bean Studios, Mega Bloks

ShieldsShield: Size:(S) Cost:1CP Use:2 Range:CC Effect:Deflecting Parry Notes:Parry or
Shove onlyHeavy Shield: Size:(M) Cost:1CP Use:3 Range:CC Effect:Deflecting Parry Notes:Parry or
Shove only, can provide cover A Shield is like a Hand Weapon devoted to Parrying (5.2: Close Combat).
Shields cannot be used to make Attacks or Counterattacks, but they can sometimes also be handy for Shoving opponents into proper position
for a follow-up attack.

A minifig who successfully Parries an attack has Deflection against it. A Shield can Parry the same Close Combat Attacks and Counterattacks as any normal Close Combat Weapon, but it can also Parry thrown weapons and Damage from Charge attacks like Jousts and Crashes (H.3: Fighting From Horseback).

The Police State of Venice's riot squad, called "The Brick Wall," are perfect for defending chokepoints and covering backwards-advances.

Shields come in two sizes - regular Short-sized Shields, and Minifig-sized Heavy Shields. The Heavy Shield is slightly more difficult to use, with a Use of 3 rather than 2, but it has an advantage: unlike a regular Shield, the Heavy Shield can be positioned as passive cover against all types of attacks, in addition to being used actively to Parry. It can provide cover either by itself, in conjunction with other cover elements on the field, or put together with the Heavy Shields of other units (5.1: Making Attacks). Like all cover, its effectiveness will depend on how well the Heavy Shield is positioned between the unit and the attacker, of course - if it's pointed in the wrong direction when the attack is made, it's too late to reposition it.

Attacking a Shield

When an enemy minifig is entirely hidden behind a Heavy Shield, attackers may prefer to target the Heavy Shield itself rather than the minifig behind it. When attacked directly, Shields and Heavy Shields have an Armor rating of 1d10 with one level of Deflection. If this Armor is overcome, the item is rendered useless and destroyed.

Body Armor

Sometimes Armor can become a troop in itself, if it's left lying around too long and becomes posessed by armor ghosts.

“During the Middle Ages, probably one of the biggest mistakes was not putting on your armor because you were 'just going down to the corner.'”

- Jack Handey

For faint-hearted warriors who fear death but are too lazy to lift a Shield in their
own defense, Body Armor is a great way to prolong their worthless lives. As a bonus, Body Armor impairs their movement to the point that the cowards can always "coincidentally" be the last to arrive at the front lines.

A minifig wearing Body Armor gets +2 to Armor against all incoming attacks (but not for internal Damage, like the effects of having been Poisoned or of swallowing a grenade). Wearing Body Armor prevents a minifig from swimming, jumping, or flying.

When a piece of Body Armor is combined with a visored helmet, it becomes Heavy Armor.
A minifig wearing Heavy Armor is even better protected, but has an even harder time moving around. A minifig in Heavy Armor has Deflection against all incoming attacks, but is forced to move at Half Speed (4.1: Movement ).

If a minifig wearing Body Armor or Heavy Armor falls in water, he must either use an Action to remove the armor or hope that someone can fish him out in a hurry. Otherwise, he will die of drowning at the end of his next turn. (Assuming he needs to breathe, that is - non-living minifigs like androids and skeletons can continue wandering around happily underwater with no ill effect.)

Because of their poor mobility on foot, it's best to mount Heavy Armored minifigs on the back of a Horse (Chapter H: The Horse), or to post them in narrow gates and walkways where they can't be easily outmaneuvered and bypassed.

Fighting Minifigs with Deflection

Minifigs with Deflection can seem invulnerable against attacks from minifig weapons, most of which have only a single Damage die to remove. Overcoming this defense can take a little extra strategy.

Half Speed makes Heavy Armored minifigs easy to outrun, and their inability to jump over gaps and obstacles makes them easy to outmaneuver. Dunk them in water, and they have a single turn to remove their armor or drown. Their strong defenses mean nothing if no one has to fight them to begin with.

Charge Attacks are an effective strategy against Deflection. Momentum can add more Damage dice than a minifig's Deflection can remove, and KnockBack Inches can Disrupt them (5.4: Charge!).

Some weapons have Damage left over after dice are removed. Leftover +1s and +2s of Damage from Long-Ranged and Heavy Weapons aren't enough to kill a minifig by themselves, but they can add up if used for Combined Damage. A Two-Handed Weapon does two dice of Damage all by itself, or course, and a Heavy Weapon has an Armor Piercing attack if used two-handed. Either can do a full die of Damage even after accounting for Deflection.

For attacks with only a single die of Damage, there are many ways to stack extra dice into the total. Overskill Dice from lucky Skill rolls (4.2: Action) and Instant and Almighty Benny dice (1.4: The Spirit of the Game) can all boost the Damage from an attack.

3.4: Desperate Measures

Despite the hypnotizing power of minifig butts, mooning the enemy has not been shown to have any practical effect.

“It is important when you haven't got any ammunition to have a butt on your rifle.”

- Winston Churchill

Nothing makes a warrior feel stupider than arriving at a battle and
realizing he forgot to bring a weapon. He still has options, but mooning
the enemy has limited practical effect, and he's better
off trying to scavenge a real weapon as quickly as possible.

Unable to reach the enemy wizard in time to interrupt a deadly spell, Eric Joslin's giant starts hurling the projectiles closest at hand: a flock of sheep.

Minifigs lack the ability to clench their clawlike hands into fists,
and the limited range of minifig leg motion means that the groins
of their enemies will never be exposed to their nonexistent knees.
As a result, unarmed combat between minifigs is an almost complete
waste of time. The only really worthwhile use for Bare Hands is in
grabbing someone else's dropped weapon.

Bare Hands cannot be used to Attack. If a minifig has one or both hands free, he can use it to Grab his opponent, either for the sake of hitting him with a weapon in his other hand, or holding the enemy in place for one of his better-armed allies. If both hands are empty, then the minifig can use both of them to Shove his opponent 2" away, in an attempt
to put some distance between himself and the real warriors who remembered to come armed.

Although Bare Hands cannot be used to Parry a Close Combat Attack, they can be used to Parry a Shove or Grab (5.2:
Close Combat).

When the Elven army arrives to crush a tavern full of Frostborne and Norsemen,, this brave tavern patron takes up a bottle to defend what's really important.

“In the long history of humankind (and animal kind, too) those who learned to collaborate and improvise most effectively have prevailed.”

- Charles Darwin

The "official" purpose of a Minifig Tool is to help minifigs do their jobs. Medix need their first aid kits, Mechanix need their wrenches, and Clerix need their holy symbols. Fortunately for everyone involved, all of these things can also be used to beat people to death.

Any tool designed to be gripped and carried in a minifig's hand can be used as if it were a makeshift Hand Weapon with less effective stats. This includes not only obvious striking implements like hammers, torches, and frying pans, but also suitcases, coffee mugs, megaphones, and teapots. Larger, Minifig-Sized Tools have the same stats but require two hands; these include rifle butts, shovels, metal detectors, pushbrooms, and oars.

Decapitated heads and skulls also count as Minifig Tools when used in combat. Not because this makes any sense, but because beating opponents to death with their own friends' faces is Ossum.

Random ObjectsSize:- Cost:- Use:4 Range:CC Damage:Skill die -2

“If a person offends you and you are in doubt as to whether it was intentional or not, do not resort to extreme measures. Simply watch your chance and hit him with a brick.”

- Mark Twain

In the Human world, table legs, broken bottles, and even big rocks are
all part of a cherished tradition of improvised weaponry. In BrikWars, minifigs are just as likely to improvise with a broken fender, a door, or an unsuspecting sheep. If a minifig
can't find a real weapon, Random Objects are better than nothing,
although that's only because having nothing sucks to such an impressive degree.

Any object that could conceivably be picked up and swung around by a minifig can
be used as an improvised weapon. Some objects are obviously excluded:
items like shortbows, flowers, and hats are too flimsy to do any
damage, while objects larger than two minifigs in length are too big to pick up.

The minifig must have a physical element he can hold in his
hand. He can't claim "there's a belt printed on
my torso, I'm taking it off and whacking you with it."

"Though boys throw stones at frogs in sport, the frogs do not die in sport, but in earnest."

- Plutarch

If an object can be used one-handed in Close Combat (whether as a regular weapon, Minifig Tool, or Random Object), it can also be thrown. A Thrown Object has exactly the same Use and Damage rating as if it were being used in Close Combat, but with a Range of 3" it can be hurled at targets out of immediate reach.

By throwing a weapon rather than running in swinging, minifigs can avoid entering Close Combat and risking Counterattacks. A Thrown Object can be Parried by a Shield or Heavy Shield (5.2: Close Combat), but not by other weapons (except in special cases - thrown baseballs can be Parried by a baseball bat, for instance).

Once they're thrown, Thrown Objects have a known drawback in that surviving opponents can then pick them up and use them against the original thrower. Grenades are a popular workaround for this issue.